CSW-G key terms

The multidisciplinary study of aging and older adults, drawing on biology, psychology, sociology, and policy. It examines how people age and how societies respond to population aging.

The branch of medicine focused on preventing, diagnosing, and treating illness in older adults, emphasizing function, multiple conditions, and medication management rather than a single disease.

Prejudice, stereotyping, or discrimination against people because of their age. It can be institutional, interpersonal, or internalized, and it affects hiring, healthcare, and social participation.

The average number of years a person is expected to live given current mortality rates. At birth it summarizes population health; at age 65 it estimates remaining years.

The number of years a person lives in reasonably good health, free of disabling chronic disease. It is often contrasted with total lifespan to highlight quality of later life.

The idea that serious illness and disability can be postponed toward the very end of life, shortening the period of poor health even if lifespan lengthens.

Basic self-care tasks such as bathing, dressing, toileting, transferring, eating, and continence. Difficulty with ADLs signals need for personal assistance or long-term care.

Tasks needed to live independently in the community, such as managing money, shopping, cooking, using transportation, and handling medications. IADL loss often precedes ADL loss.

A structured evaluation of what a person can actually do in daily life, including mobility, self-care, cognition, and home safety. Results guide care planning and level-of-care decisions.

A clinical state of increased vulnerability to stressors due to reduced physiological reserve. It is often marked by unintentional weight loss, exhaustion, weakness, slow walking, and low activity.

Age-related loss of skeletal muscle mass and strength. It raises fall risk and disability, and it is addressed through resistance exercise and adequate protein intake.

The presence of two or more chronic conditions in the same person at the same time. In older adults it complicates treatment because conditions and their therapies interact.

Use of multiple medications, commonly five or more, often prescribed by different clinicians. It increases the risk of adverse drug events, falls, and hospital admission.

A widely used list of medications considered potentially inappropriate for older adults because of high risk of harm. It supports medication review but does not replace clinical judgment.

Harm caused by a medication, including side effects, interactions, dosing errors, and allergic reactions. Older adults are more susceptible because of altered metabolism and multiple prescriptions.

An acute, fluctuating disturbance of attention and awareness, often triggered by infection, medication, pain, or surgery. It is a medical emergency and is frequently mistaken for dementia.

A progressive decline in memory and other cognitive abilities severe enough to interfere with independence. Many causes exist, and some, such as vitamin deficiency, are reversible.

The most common cause of dementia, marked by progressive memory loss and decline in thinking, with characteristic brain changes. It usually begins gradually and worsens over years.

The likelihood of an older adult falling, increased by poor balance, muscle weakness, vision problems, medications, and home hazards. Screening and modification reduce injury and hospitalization.

The physical, emotional, and financial strain experienced by people caring for an older adult. It can lead to depression, illness, and early institutional placement of the care recipient.

Short-term substitute care that gives family caregivers a break from caregiving duties. It may be provided at home, in adult day programs, or in residential facilities.

A range of services for people who need help with daily activities over an extended period, provided at home, in assisted living, or in nursing facilities. It is often paid privately.

Residential setting offering housing, meals, and help with daily activities, with staff available around the clock. It is designed for people who need some support but not skilled nursing care.

Remaining in one's own home and community as one grows older, with support services adapted to changing needs. It requires home modification, transportation, and access to care.

Harm inflicted on an older adult, including physical, emotional, sexual, and financial abuse, neglect, and abandonment. Reporting is often legally mandated for health and social service workers.

A framework describing aging well through low disease and disability, high physical and cognitive function, and active engagement in life. Critics note it may overlook social constraints.

A locality that adapts services, housing, transportation, and public spaces so older residents can participate fully. The concept is promoted by international and municipal aging initiatives.

Having few social contacts or limited meaningful interaction with others. In older adults it is linked to depression, cognitive decline, and higher mortality.

The transition out of paid employment, typically later in life. It changes income, daily routine, identity, and social roles, and planning affects financial and psychological well-being.

Care focused on relieving pain and other symptoms and improving quality of life for people with serious illness. It can be provided alongside curative treatment at any stage.

Comfort-focused care for people near the end of life, when curative treatment is no longer pursued. It supports the patient and family, often at home.

A written statement made while a person is capable, specifying future medical preferences or naming someone to decide. Examples include living wills and healthcare power of attorney.

An older adult with no living children or close family to provide support. The term highlights gaps in informal care networks as populations age and family sizes shrink.

The distribution of a population by age group. Shifts toward older ages affect labor supply, pension systems, healthcare demand, and the dependency ratio.

The ratio of people typically not in the workforce, such as children and older adults, to working-age people. It is used to assess pressure on pensions and services.

A person who has reached 100 years of age. Studying centenarians helps researchers understand genetic, lifestyle, and environmental factors linked to exceptional longevity.

An estimate of how well the body is functioning relative to chronological age, based on biomarkers and physical measures. It can differ substantially from the number of years lived.